"For two generations now, those who care about African development have been seeking an important key, searching for the best way to improve the quality of human life by advancing the pace of economic development. One of the most promising outcomes of that search was the creation of a new set of venture capital institutions – ready to invest in projects which traditional private investors were less likely to support."

HH the Aga Khan speaking at the Official Opening of the Kampala Serena Hotel (10 November 2006)

Economic Development

In many remote areas, development arrives at a stage when further progress becomes dependant on larger infrastructure issues, such as roads, telecommunications and electric power. In Uganda, for example, only five percent of the population has access to electricity. Rural electrification and the creation of electricity-generating plants then become vital to progress.
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Travel â€śOscarsâ€ť for Serena Hotels in Africa25 October 2013 - Serena Hotels received six World Travel Awards, including â€śAfricaâ€™s leading Hotel Brandâ€ť; â€śLeading Eco Hotel of the Year 2013â€ť for the Amboseli Serena Safari Lodge; â€śRwandaâ€™s Leading Hotel 2013â€ť for the Kigali Serena; â€śKenyaâ€™s Leading Business Hotel 2013â€ť for the Nairobi Serena Hotel; â€śUgandaâ€™s Leading Hotel 2013â€ť for Kampala Serena Hotel; and â€śTanzaniaâ€™s Leading Hotel 2013â€ť for the Dar es Salaam Serena Hotel.

Nyagak I Hydropower Plant Inaugurated20 September 2012 - His Excellency President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni today inaugurated the 3.5MW Nyagak I hydropower station in Paidha, Zombo District. The occasion officially marked the onset of 24hour electricity supply for the people of the West Nile sub-region.

Serena Hotels Receive African Business Award 2012 for Contributions to Africa22 June 2012 - Serena Hotels receives the 2012 African Business Award in the â€śBest Hospitality, Travel and Tourism in Africaâ€ť category. Serena Hotels was recognized for â€śbranding its country or region as an attractive tourism destination in Africa, ultimately benefitting the African tourism industry and the continent as a wholeâ€ť.

Introduction

The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) and its institutional predecessors have been working in Uganda for over 50 years. Over the past decade, AKDN has been expanding its activities in Uganda. AKDN’s activities in the country now extend from infrastructure development that is bringing electricity to the West Nile region to an early childhood education programme that assists poor communities create and maintain pre-schools. Its activities also include an economic development project that manufactures essential pharmaceuticals to an advanced nursing studies programme that provides professional career development and clinical training to nurses. In every endeavour, the aim is to help meet Uganda’s development needs with projects that are efficient, effective and which have a wide impact on the quality of life for citizens of the country.

Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance

Microfinance for Women in Northern Pakistan

Since its establishment in 2005, the Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance (AKAM) has taken over 25 years of microfinance activities, programmes and banks that were administered by sister agencies within the AKDN. The underlying objectives of the Agency are to reduce poverty, diminish the vulnerability of poor populations and alleviate economic and social exclusion. more